New Report on
International Status of Privacy. At the annual
meeting of Privacy Commissioners in Hong Kong, Privacy
& Human Rights 1999 was officially released. The
survey documents the growing movement towards legislation
of data protection and privacy laws. It also cites and
warns of current abuses committed by law enforcement and
governments.

Upcoming Meeting Addresses
Future of Electronic Commerce. "The
Public Voice In Electronic Commerce" will bring
together representatives of international consumer,
policy and workers' organizations to discuss issues
relating to electronic commerce. Topics to be discussed
include: protection of consumer rights, privacy and
personal data protection, internet access and
development, and the changing relationship between
businesses and consumers. The conference will be held in
Paris, France on October 11.

GILC Members Defend Free
Expression at Internet Content Summit. From
Munich, nineteen GILC members have released a statement
opposing the Internet Content Rating Association's
attempt to establish new international content rating
standards. Such standards pose a threat to the long-term
preservation of free speech on the Internet. A collection
of essays and studies written by signatories of the
statement, "Filters
and Freedom: Free Speech Perspectives on Internet Content
Controls", has been released in conjunction with the
conference.

Conference Seeks
International Content Rating System. At a
conference taking place in Munich on September 9-11, the
Internet Content Rating Association, a new global
consortium of corporations -- including AOL, Microsoft,
IBM, British Telecom, and Bertelsmann -- will push
towards a world-wide policy of self-rating [news
article]. Concerns have been raised that content
rating could threaten the freedom of expression,
diversity of views, and accessibility that the Internet
currently offers. For more information, refer to GILC
resources on filtering
and rating.

Germany Loosens Control on
Export of Encryption Products. Beginning
September 1, the distribution of encryption technology --
regardless of key lengths -- will not require an export
license. See the article
from Heise online (in german).

New International Survey
Finds Few Controls. The 1999
Cryptography and Liberty report reveals that few
countries worldwide now restrict encryption technologies
and that there has been more relaxation of restrictions
on encryption by major industrialized countries in the
previous year.